


Somniphobia

by staticcrisis



Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Dream Smp, Found Family, Gen, non-canon, some canon elements
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-25
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-15 19:00:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,228
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29688483
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/staticcrisis/pseuds/staticcrisis
Summary: "Barking can be heard in the dark. At first it was a low growl, a few dogs stirred, awakened by the sound of prints being left in the snow. The dogs grew agitated, barking at the passerby, but whoever it was, they seemed unfazed by the barking. The prints continued, walking slowly and methodically. However, someone did stir in the house."
Kudos: 21





	1. The First Night

Barking can be heard in the dark. At first it was a low growl, a few dogs stirred, awakened by the sound of prints being left in the snow. The dogs grew agitated, barking at the passerby, but whoever it was, they seemed unfazed by the barking. The prints continued, walking slowly and methodically. However, someone did stir in the house.

Technoblade, having a rather restless night, was already half-awake when he heard the barking. He slowly opens his eyes, sitting up in his bed. He turns on a lamp, light fills the room. He looks around, his eyes training on the clock on the wall. It's 1 o'clock in the morning. He sighs, rubbing his temple with his fingers, why the heck would they be barking this late at night? It could just be a passing zombie or skeleton, but they know better, this is something different. He pulls on his cloak, grabbing a torch off the wall. He opens the door to his room and takes a peek into the other room. Phil is asleep, lazily sprawled on the bed, must have passed out when he came home from exploring. Techno continues walking, pushing the door open, and stepping outside.

It’s snowing, a light haze of snow falling onto the already snow-ridden ground. Technoblade gazes out into the open, there’s no one in the front yard, but he can make out prints. These were not from a mob, these were shoeprints. He walks down the stairs, following the prints. He walks until there is a faint purple glow, the nether portal lighting up the dark. Of course, the prints stop there, leading into the portal. Techno glances at the portal, who would be walking around this late at night? He shrugs, whatever it is, it's gone for now, and it's not his problem anymore. He trudges his way back home, closing the door behind him. He crawls back under the sheets and just lays there. He doesn’t go back to sleep for the rest of the night.


	2. A Morning Conversation

“Have you talked to him since yesterday?”

“That's very vague Phil.”

“I think you know who I’m talking about.”

Of course Techno knew what Phil was talking about, the damn voices haven’t shut up about him since he moved in nearby, it is literally all they talk about, he just wanted to humor him for a bit.

“I'm guessing you mean that Ranboo fella right.” Techno pauses for a second. “Why exactly is he living here?”

Phil glances over. “Look, I talked to him after the whole exploding L’manburg thing yesterday, and he sounded down. I figured since we destroyed his home, maybe he could come live with us.”

“Phil this sounds like an excuse to adopt another child.” Techno smiles a little, Phil just gives him a hard stare

“Look I fucking felt bad okay, he's a good kid, I couldn’t just leave him.”

Techno lets out a slight exhale, this is very humorous

“Don’t you care about him too Techno?” Phil raises an eyebrow, a smug look on his face

Techno pauses for a second before answering. “He's… okay…”

“Just.. OK?”

“I-I don’t know what you want me to say man. He gave me back my armor, I gave him back his book, we are on neutral grounds. He’s okay.”

Phil just sighs, nodding his head, making his way to the window, Techno looks out as well.

They both look out across the snow. A quite small wooden shack sat in the distance, a couple of pets just hanging out in the yard. The half-n-half enderman is shifting through his chest. He pulls out a bunch of wood, laying in on the dirt ground. He closes the chest and turns, Techno catching a glimpse of his green eye before retreating back from the window, Phil following his lead. 

“I think we should go talk to him, ya know, give him a warm welcome to the frozen hellhole eh?” Phil jabs lightly at Technoblade, who just huffs. Phil just smiles. “I’m gonna go check on the dogs and then we can head over. I think I heard them barking last night”

The door closes behind Phil, Techno sighs, glancing back out the window.

A silhouette stared back at him, his tail swinging tentatively back and forth, and just for a moment, their eyes locked onto each other before the silhouette turned, focusing back on their work. Techno slowly closes the window, silent as he grabs his cloak and heads out the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello still don't know what I am doing i promise the story will pick up im just setting up right now :)


	3. A Causal Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ah, we finally get to meet up with Ranboo. This won't get awkward at all.

It took about an hour for Phil and Techno to finally make their way to Ranboo’s house, I mean, there are hundreds of dogs to feed and care for. They walked toward the shack, Ranboo was outside building, squatting under the roof he was trying to build. Phil lightly taps him on the shoulder.

“Hey bud, how are you?” Phil inquiries

Ranboo’s back straightens out immediately, his head hitting against the roof, a faint grunt escapes his mouth before he turns around rubbing his head. He squints for a second before their faces come into focus, a small smile crosses his face.

“Oh hello there, umm how are you?” he asked nervously.

“We’re fine mate, just wanted to check on you is all.” 

“Ah I see, yeah i'm good, i'm good, just building that's all, trying to improve my home.” Ranboo lets out a strained laugh, gesturing towards the build.

“Yeah I see that, I see that…” 

A silence follows, a very uncomfortable silence. Ranboo looks between the two of them but says nothing. Phil looks over at Techno, who is looking at the rabbits nearby. Phil nudges Techno, snapping him out of it and motions toward Ranboo with his head. 

“Ah yes. How do you like living hereeee?” Techno elongates the last vowel, he did not want to be put in this position.

“It’s nice here, I mean it’s better than... “ Ranboo pauses, his shoulders going stiff for a second before relaxing. “Lmanburg..” he ends the sentence sharply.

“Look, I know Lmanburg was your home, but what happened had to happen, it was for the best.” Phil says bluntly.”

“No no I agree completely. It needed to happen. That country was.. too much.” Ranboo smiled slightly, a pained smile. “A lot of conflict was created from it, I think some conflict will end from it.”

“Yeah exactly, it was on its last leg. It was a good thing us and Dream came in and took care of it-” Phil seemed to cut himself off.

Techno wasn’t paying much attention to this rather dull conversation, but he was noticing body language, just the slight movements. Like how when Phil mentioned Dream, Ranboo’s pupils dilated just the slightest bit, how his hand clenched shut and opened again quickly. How the rest of his body, just for a moment, froze in time before re-animating again. Techno looked at Phil, perhaps he noticed as well.

“Anyways, now that we are neighbors, maybe you could do some work for us or something, like payment for helping you.” Phil jokes.

Ranboo’s focus snapped back into place. “Oh yeah of course, I wouldn’t mind helping you guys out.” he smiled a little, his voice filled with sincerity at the rather obvious joke.

The silence returned, it was deafening. Techno’s ears flickered gently, almost like they could feel the heaviness in the air. Phil’s wings gently moved in the slight breeze. Ranboo’s tail hung low, making slight movements as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. 

Phil clapped his hands together, bringing everyone back to focus. “Welp it was a pleasure getting to talk to you Ranboo, we are glad that you are here, and I hope you have a good rest of your day.”

“Yeah.” Ranboo nods his head slightly. “You too.”

“Let’s go Techno.” Phil says, patting his hand on Techno’s back and motioning for him to follow him.

Techno acknowledges the motion, once again shouldering off Phil’s hand. He looks up at Ranboo. Ranboo looks.. Disappointed. Like he was expecting more from them. Ranboo notices his gaze and gives a slight wave in return, his eyes averting his eyes.

Techno turns on his heel and walks, catching up to Phil.

“That was awkward.”

“Tell me about it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Sorry that my chapters are short. I have been reading other fics and taking notes on how to make mine better. I hope you enjoy this, cause god only knows where im going with this.


	4. Maybe We Could Get Along?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After their first awkward conversation, Phil and Techno decide to go talk to Ranboo again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Slight talk of violence

Night came once again. The darkness brought a blanket of quiet across the snow, with the occasional zombie groan or rattle of a skeleton. The silence was once again broken by the sound of footprints. A sorta of dance played out in the snow. The prints were odd at first, the prints appearing longer than they should have, as if they were dragged. Then, the steps became more apparent, more obvious, the prints made heavily in the snow, a purpose was made taking each one. One by one the trail created a path, leading into the darkness. Finally they found their destination, the faint purple glow of the portal illuminated them. And then they were gone.

A few days had passed. Everyone worked around each other in mutual silence. Techno had gone out, hoping to find some new villages to trade with, returning days later with newfound treasure and plenty of emeralds to spare. Phil had been in another world, one where he could rule the skies and build to his heart’s content. It was a few days later that they finally got back together.

“Did you get any good loot?” 

Techno responds by dropping the loot onto the table, emeralds spilling out everywhere, along with name tags, enchanted books, and even a couple of maps, filled with the promise of more adventures to come.

Phil merely nods, examining the contents on the table. “You must have been busy.”

“It was okay I guess, nothing too exciting.” Techno shrugs.

The voices were chattering amongst themselves, some begging to go on another adventure, some wanting to stay back and talk to Phil, chanting Dadza much to Techno’s annoyance. Then, one, just one voice spoke up from the crowd, almost drowned out by the others around it.

_How’s Ranboo? ___

__And then they erupted_ _

__One by one, they began to repeat the phrase, some adding their own twist to it. You should go talk to him. Is he part of the family now? Go check on him. Most of them, however, seemed to stick to one phrase._ _

___Ranboo my Beloved (this isnt italizing grrr) ____ _

____“What?”_ _ _ _

____“What do you mean what?” Phil looked up at Techno, tilting his head a bit in confusion._ _ _ _

____Techno places his hands on his temples, slowly rolling his fingers against his skull. “It’s the voices again, they keep talking about that Ranboo fella. They seem to have taken a liking to him”_ _ _ _

____Phil just laughs. “Speaking of Ranboo, I think maybe we could go talk to him again, since last time was so.. bad.”_ _ _ _

____Techno didn’t seem to have a choice. The voices all agreed in unison that this is the content they wanted today, and they were gonna annoy Techno until they got their way._ _ _ _

____“Fineeeeeeee, I guess we could go talk to him.”_ _ _ _

____“Great, I will meet you out there.” And with that, Phil was out the door._ _ _ _

____The voices coaxed him to follow._ _ _ _

____-_ _ _ _

____By the time Techno made it over, Phil was knocking on Ranboo’s door. The place had been renovated a little. A small farm sat near the house, the sprouts of wheat beginning to grow from the ground. The faint sounds of cows mooed in the distance. The place seemed more homely than it had before._ _ _ _

____The door opened slightly, a red eye peering out quickly, looking for the owner of the knock and finally noticed Phil. A sigh of relief escaped his mouth and the door swung open._ _ _ _

____“Oh hey, I didn’t expect to see you guys here.. At all.”_ _ _ _

____ _ _

____“Yeah, just thought we’d check up on you is all, how are you doing?”_ _ _ _

____“Oh I’m fine, just been working a lot out here a lot, trying to make the place more homely.” Ranboo answered back. He shifted his weight into one leg, nervously rubbing his hands together._ _ _ _

____“Well..” Phil clasped his hands together. “I thought maybe you’d like to join us and do some blaze farming in the nether, we could always use an extra hand, and when we are done, we split the loot.”_ _ _ _

____Ranboo’s eyes lit up, a slight smile forming on his lips. “Yeah, that actually sounds like fun, I wouldn’t mind stepping away from here for a bit. Let me grab my things.” And just like that he slipped back inside, slamming the door shut._ _ _ _

____Techno looks over at Phil, what is this man planning?_ _ _ _

____Ranboo returned a few moments later, decked out in armor and brandishing a sword at his hip, along with a few fire-resistance potions. The armor just barely fit his thin frame, the chestplate unable to cover his entire stomach since he was so tall. It looked quite comical, considering he was wearing a suit underneath._ _ _ _

____Phil smiled. “Alright let's get going.” and motioned for the two to follow._ _ _ _

____They made it all the way to the nether portal before Phil paused, turning toward the other two in his wake._ _ _ _

____“Ah ya know what, I think I left something important in the cabin, I need to head back and get it. You two wait here.”  
Techno squinted at Techno. Phil shot him a quick mischievous smile._ _ _ _

____Motherfucker, he did this on purpose_ _ _ _

____Before Techno got a chance to retort, Phil was already gone. Leaving them both. Alone._ _ _ _

____They stood there in silence, making passing glances at each other before turning away quickly. They had talked before, so why was the silence so deafening?_ _ _ _

____“I’m sorry.”_ _ _ _

____Techno looked up. The teenager was looking down, shuffling his feet in the snow. He was absently rubbing his hand through his hair, making it a tangled mess. Where did this come from?_ _ _ _

____“Sorry for what?” Techno questioned_ _ _ _

____“The whole Butcher Army thing. Holding Carl against his will, bringing you to your own execution, putting Philza under house-arrest. That thing.” Ranboo didn’t look up, his voice quiet as he spoke._ _ _ _

____Techno paused. He could still remember that fateful day. Being forced to strip off his armor and drop his weapons, how humiliating it was. He remembered being forced into the cage, a wild animal to be publicly executed. He could still see the gleam in Quackity’s eyes, a bloodlust he was all too familiar with himself. He remembered his grip on the Totem of Undying, turning his knuckles white, holding onto his salvation. And he remembered Phil’s voice, his pleas as the anvil was dropped._ _ _ _

____And for a moment there was silence, a silence he had never been able to experience with the voices as they all collectively held their breath._ _ _ _

____And then he felt the breath in his lungs return, a gold and green glow encased his body, reforming his body that he nearly lost._ _ _ _

____He had cheated death_ _ _ _

____He didn’t have time to waste, he broke free from the bars, and escaped. He heard shouts of confusion behind him, but they didn’t matter, he needed to run. He caught a glimpse of neon green tugging on Carl’s reigns as they disappeared into a tunnel. He followed behind quickly, the entrance being blocked up behind him. Techno turned toward him, to the white mask with the plastered smile on his face._ _ _ _

____“I owe you one.”_ _ _ _

____And then the green man disappeared.  
The rest of that day went by quickly. He remembers being found by Quackity, and then promptly putting a picaxe into his skull, Quackity’s body falling limp and disappearing. He remembers breaking through the tunnel, gently pulling Karl along as he mined. He remembers making it home and just collapsing into his bed, his bones ached and his head felt like it had been split in two. _ _ _ _

____So he slept._ _ _ _

____A week later, Phil had escaped his home in Lmanburg. He had swung open the door, and immediately headed to Techno’s room. Techno had just woken up from the sound of the door, putting his guard up, not even getting a chance to react as Phil pulled Techno into his arms and hugged him tightly, reassured that his adopted son was fine. Techno arms dropped to his side, offering no resistance to the embrace._ _ _ _

____Phil checked on Techno, assessing his wounds that Techno hadn’t bothered to treat. Techno had a few small lashes from his fight with Quackity, but those were treated easily. What concerned Phil was Techno’s head. When he touched his son’s head, he winched slightly, the voices screamed out. His head had a permanent dent in it, a token from the anvil._ _ _ _

____In total, that was not a “fun” week._ _ _ _

____However, fortune was to come his way._ _ _ _

____“You brought me my armor back, I consider us even.” Techno simply retorted back. He looked over at Ranboo, he still hadn’t looked up, clearly that explanation wasn’t enough._ _ _ _

____ _ _

____Techno sighed, rubbing his head in thought, feeling the slight indentation in his skull. “You were the only one who had the guts to face me after that.”_ _ _ _

____“Guts?” Ranboo couldn’t help but let out a quick pained laugh before going quiet again. “That is far from what I have. I didn’t really want to be a part of their group, I was dragged into it.” Ranboo clenched his hands, his voice getting shaky. “I-I should have said something, I could have done something…” He let out an exasperated sigh. “But I am weak, I succumbed to their pressures. God…” He sucked in his breath, his whole frame starting to shake._ _ _ _

____Techno seemed frozen in place, watching the teen let out his frustrations. Why was this bothering him? And then he realized._ _ _ _

____He reminded him of himself._ _ _ _

____“I…” Techno spoke slowly. “I understand what you mean, I’ve also.. fallen victim to pressure.”_ _ _ _

____The teen looked up, His eyes were glossy, tears threatening to spill over at any moment. He looked in disbelief. Techno decided to keep talking._ _ _ _

____“I had been pulled onto a stage by a tyrant, a government, and demanded to kill their traitor. I had been working with that traitor to take down that same government. I was to kill my ally at the time for some sick kicks. And then I did.. I committed the deed. I killed him.”_ _ _ _

____Ranboo stayed silent, his shaking had stopped._ _ _ _

____“So.. don’t be so hard on yourself. It happens.” Techno shrugged his shoulders._ _ _ _

____Ranboo smiled slightly._ _ _ _

____“I don’t care or anything like that, just so you know.” Techno added on quickly._ _ _ _

____“Yeah no of course, I get it.” Ranboo said, laughing slightly to himself._ _ _ _

____…_ _ _ _

____“Thanks.”_ _ _ _

____Techno just huffed in response. He saw Phil in the distance walking towards them, about time._ _ _ _

____They went to the nether and hung out by the spawner. A few conversations started up, but their attention was focused on the blazes, the screams of blazes ringing out in the red sky. They got about a stack in total, and split in between themselves. Satisfied with a day’s work, they headed home. They walked Ranboo to his door, they exchanged farewells and Phil and Techno started on their way home._ _ _ _

____“What did you forget at the house?” Techno questioned._ _ _ _

____“Oh…. nothing.” Phil smiled widely, Techno sighed, he wasn’t even surprised._ _ _ _

____“You’re cruel.” Techno spat, no hint of malice in his voice._ _ _ _

____Phil just laughed_ _ _ _

____“I know.”_ _ _ _

**Author's Note:**

> I have never written a story out before and im making this story because im too lazy to draw it out and I have ideas so here ya go i guess.


End file.
